Educational appliance.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

\VILLIAM A. PR'OOTOR, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF'ONE-I-IALF TO ALONZO P. GRINNELL, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS.

EDUCATIONAL APPLIANCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 690,664, dated January '7. 1902. Application filed December 7 1900. Serial No. 39,110. (No model.)

merals, or other suitable symbols or signs,

which upon being moved and placed in different positions with relation to each other produce any desired combinations of letters, words, and figures.

The object of the present invention is to produce an amusing and instructive gameboard of simple form and arrangement combining freely-movable blocks or counters,

which can be moved as desiredfrom end to end of the board and laterally with relation to the longitudinal line of movement and placed in any position with relation to any other group of blocks or counters, the arrangement being such that in forming words by the assemblage of a group of blocks or counters bearing the required letters the formation of the word is capable of being produced by the proper and natural assembling of the letters from left to right, as in Writing or printing.

A further object of the invention'is to so construct the board that it shall be much lighter than those heretofore produced and one in which the counters or blocks may be readily removed and replaced in a reversed position, if desired.

Further objects of the invention will ap pear hereinafter.

To the above ends the present invention consists of the improved game-board or educational appliance which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

The present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 shows a plan view of the board with one corner broken away and turned over to show the opposite face of the counters or blocks. Fig. 2 shows a transverse secployed throughout the specification'and drawings to designate corresponding parts.

In the drawings, a designates the board,

which consists ofa frame I), which maybe of any desired shape, but which is, as shown, preferably rectangular and which may be made of any desirable material, that shown being made of wood and joined together at its corners in any suitable manner. The frame I) is an open frame and of a thickness to receive centrally between its top and rear faces the slotted bed 0. The bed 0 consists of a plurality of parallel defiectable bars or tongues d, between which are formed the parallel passages e, which communicate with a passage f, running at right angles to the passages e. The board, as shown in the drawings, comprises a bed 0, having two groups ofbars cl and passages e, which extend from opposite sides toward the central part and open into the central vertical passage f but it is obvious that but one group of bars and passages may be employed, in which event they would extend from one side nearly to the opposite side of the frame I), the vertical passage extending along and close to one side of said frame.

The bed 0 may be made of any suitablematerial; but for the purpose of lightness, strength, and resiliency itis made of wire, which is formed into a series of long loops, forming the bars or tongues d, which at one end are fastened into the side bars of the frame a along their inner faces.

In the passages e and supported by the bars or tongues (1, so as to be freely movable along said passages e and f, are the counters, blocks,

or men it, which have a head i, a base j, and

a shank 7c, the heads and bases being of a size to overlap the faces of adjacent bars ortongu es d,and the shanks,which are preferably rounded, of a size to pass freely along the passages e and For the purpose of causing the counters or blocks Z to become properly alined when positioned as desired, and thus retain the letters or other signs in an upright position, the head '5 is made square, so that when brought into contact with the side of the frame or with the adjacent blocks they will assume the proper position, as clearly shown in the drawings. Preferably both the head and base of each block is formed square in shape,although it is obvious that so long as one is square the other may be of any suitable or desired shape, as by making either the head or base square the desired proper alinement may be produced.

Viewing Fig. l of the drawings, the larger portion of Fig. 1 is intended to represent one face of the board, showing the blocks as carrying the letters of the alphabet, while the portion broken off is intended to represent the opposite face of the board, showing the blocks as carrying numerals and other signs.

It is obvious that any desired sign or symbol or portion of pictures may be placed on the blocks.

It will be noted that by making the tongues d resilient they may be sprung down at their outer ends to permit the blocks h to be removed and replaced at will.

Having described my invention, I desire to state that in so far as I am aware of the state of the art I am the first to produce a gameboard of the type hereinbefore described provided with freely-movably blocks or counters arranged to be moved from end to end in a longitudinal direction along said board and laterally at various points along the longitudinal line of movement so constructed and arranged that they will when brought together become properly alined, and While theform which is specificallyillustrated and described is the one preferred by me it is to be clearly understood that my invention is not'limited thereto; but

I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent ot' the United States-- 1. The combination with a reversible frame comprising resilient tongues or bars, secured at one end only to the sides of said frame and extending therefrom toward the longitudinal medial line of said frame, and forming a longitudinal passage extending from end to end of the frame, and lateral passages extending in parallel alinement from the longitudinal passage, of double-ended blocks or counters supported by the resilient tongues or bars and freelymovable along the passages, said blocks or counters having a squared end, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a suitable frame of resilient tongues or bars supported by said frame at one end only and in parallel alinement with each other, and movable blocks or counters supported by such resilienttongues -or bars and arranged to move along the passages between said tongues or bars, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a suitable frame, of resilient looped wires secured at one end only to one side thereof and extending inward from the side of said frame, said wires being properly spaced and forming supporting tongues and intermediate passages, and donble-ended blocks or counters supported by said tongues and movable along said passages.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

WILLIAM A. PROCTOR.

\Vitnesses:

L. M. LANGWORTHY, H. M. CLIFFORD. 

